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There are certain terms that could leave you and your computer vulnerable to spy ware and other viruses.

Cyber-crime happens to be a pretty large business and now criminals are finding their ways onto computers that may not be looking for “trouble” but simple things…

The worst words to search for are:

Lyrics: like lyrics to a song, because most children that are 12-15 don’t know any better than to just click on ANY link to get the information will do so.

Free or Gratis: I know only a little bit of Spanish, but I know that these two words could lead you into a lot of trouble. Spyware, adware, and viruses leak freely to these search terms.

Gear, gadgets, and games – If you really want to know what’s the latest in gadgets, please visit here more often. I am always up to date on the latest phones so please shoot me a question before searching and ending up with a virus on your computer…

Olympics – Michael Phelps did an amazing thing for the United States, by winning all those gold medals, but now people are wondering what his next move is… This could lead to spyware being installed on your computer also.

Videos – There are so many video programs out there for computers, like YouTube, which is Flash.

Celebrities – Get your news from a “trusted” source such as one of the top 10,000 in Alexa for celebrity news, some of them include Dlisted (my personal favorite), Perez Hilton, and TMZ.

The most dangerous search terms as created by McAfee says that search terms like the ones listed above signal scammers (anything from solo operators to organized crime) will be able to do business with other criminals so they can move their money.

I don’t think that anyone who reads this blog wants to particularly render any money they may have or had to organized crime so there are some steps you can take to protect your privacy:

1) Anti virus and ad ware software, run every single day. Ad-Ware, SpyBot, Symantic…these should all be companies that you are not only aware of but also quite familiar with when it comes to online safety. These programs will help keep your identity safe.

2) Monitor your childrens’ activities on the internet. Just make sure that they aren’t giving out any personal information to anyone on the internet.

3) Make sure that there are certain steps that you are taking to prevent identity theft other than those listed above. This weekend Lizzie mentioned shopping online for things. Well, most credit card companies now offer ways to shop a little safer including virtual numbers. With a virtual number you can shop and if some online retailer decides to take your credit number for a “spin” they won’t get very far.

Keep these things in mind and perhaps you can have a clear conscious when going to bed at night.

Jeremy

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